In many ways the US Open Tennis Championships that begins at Flushing Meadow in New York at the end of August heralds the end of the summer season of sport and what a summer it would be if, and I appreciate this is a big if, Scot Andy Murray could win it.
Before you go off one, it should be remembered that Andy Murray has recently been raised in the World rankings to number six and in many peoples eyes he is even better than that. The way in which Murray defeated Novak Djokovic in the final of the Cincinatti Masters last week suggested that Murray has come of age as a tennis player, the talent that we all knew he possessed is surfacing like a submarine breaking water for the first time after being underwater for years. He tanned Djokovic in an awesome display of power tennis; he beat the Serb at his own game and looked very much the better player in so doing. The win confirmed that there was no luck attached to Murray's victory over Djokovic the week before in Toronto, when he knocked him out in the quarter final there. Again in two straight sets.
Djolovic who, it could be said, rose to stardom a year ahead of Murray is the number three ranked player in the world and it had been thought he and the other two, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer were streets ahead of anyone else. That is plainly not the case based on Murray's performances in these two Masters tennis betting events. In fairness Nadal had beaten Murray in the Toronto semi finals, but even the great Nadal succumbed to a brilliant display by Djokovic in the semi finals of Cincinatti, losing for the first time in 43 matches and five tournaments. Federer of course was bounced out of both events early doors and without as much as a whimper.
It is Federer however who is the reigning Champion at Flushing, he got the better of Djokovic in the final last year but then was knocked out of the semi final by Djokovic in the Australian Open a few months later. This means that Federer now has only one Grand Slam title to his name and he knows that Nadal, Federer and Murray are after him like a pack of hounds. Surely one of the three will take this final crown off his regal head and consign him to the past tense at Flushing Meadow. For my money Murray is the one most likely to achieve it, if the draw goes well and he can avoid Nadal and Djokovic until the final he can win and become the first Briton to win a singles Grand Slam since Virginia Wade. He has everything he needs, the perfect game for hard court tennis, he has psychologically come of age and knows he can beat anyone on his day, but the confidence gained form such a breakthrough win at Cincinatti has convinced him that quite simply, that it his turn.
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